


Home

by 127s



Category: The Last of Us (Video Games)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Happy Ending, dina's perspective, i'm too lazy to properly edit this, mentions of Jesse, set between seattle and the farm, squint for angst, tagging is hard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:29:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26885158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/127s/pseuds/127s
Summary: In a way, Dina had sort of figured her pregnancy would be something Ellie would avoid for as long as possible. Maybe she still would be if Jesse were there.But he wasn't. Things were different.And in the simple touch, the wordless connection between them, Dina felt like that was okay.Because she had Ellie.And so did her baby.
Relationships: Dina/Ellie (The Last of Us)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 133





	Home

**Author's Note:**

> naughty dog won't fill in the gaps between seattle and the farm so i'll do it myself

She's barely conscious, but she knows Abby is gone. She hasn't heard any noise in a while— no footsteps, nothing from her, nothing from that kid. That kid who'd saved her and her baby's damn life, Ellie's life, and she'd never even know his name.

But she swears she can still feel the knife against her throat, like she's being pushed into it, the blade being urged to break her skin, to kill her, and she can't do a thing.

She's in and out of consciousness, moments of nothing, of blackness and emptiness, between moments of blurred visions of pieces of wood stained with blood, and a red light that seems like it's mocking her, because everything _feels_ red, and the knife is back against her throat, the arrow piercing her shoulder, and she can feel the hand at the back of her head again, forcing it down, slamming her into the wood again and again.

__"Dina."_ _

__It's a voice of pain, of desperation, a wet choke of blood. A voice of realisation._ _

__Dina wants to answer, she wants to scream and cry, but consciousness feels far away again._ _

__

__When Dina wakes, everything feels new and terrifying. She isn't sure where she is, how she got there, how long it's been. There's a ceiling above her, at least— but it isn't the theatre she's used to, but instead one of a smaller room, dark and only lit by something she can't make out, telling her it's late._ _

__There's a familiar headache-like sensation that overwhelms her all at once, and makes her feel as if her head weighs a thousand pounds._ _

__And then a million thoughts hit her, of Abby, of her pregnancy, of Jesse. Of Ellie._ _

__Dina wills every muscle in her body to cooperate, tries her hardest to hoist herself into at least a sitting position. Ellie. She had to see Ellie, talk to her._ _

__There's an immediate flow of pain to her shoulder, a dull sting with the slightest of her movements. A dry, pained noise comes from her throat, bringing the ache of having no hint of water for days, at least._ _

__"Dina— Dina, hey."_ _

__Her eyes are squeezed shut, forcing her into the process of trying to absorb the pain and let it subside, but the moment she feels rough hands steady her, she softens. Her own grip finds Ellie's arm, fingertips feelimg the texture of bandages. She remembers the harshness of the break, the sickening crack._ _

__"Your arm." She breathes, and finally brings herself to look at Ellie, as if she's afraid that the Ellie she knows is completely gone, and she won't recognise the girl before her._ _

__There's an expression that Dina hasn't seen in as long as she can remember, one of relief._ _

__"My arm," Ellie echoes, with almost amusement in her tone. "It's fine."_ _

__Dina's eyes feel heavy as she examines the other before her, the bruises littering her neck. Her nose looks different, bent, and she thinks it's broken, has the urge to reach out and trace her finger over it._ _

__"Jesse, Tommy..." Dina whispers. She doesn't want to ask for the confirmation directly, but she knows she needs it._ _

__She knew. She knew Jesse was gone. The father of her baby. Gone like her mother, gone like her sister._ _

__"Tommy's okay," Ellie mumbles in return. "He made it— He's okay."_ _

__A dozen new thoughts come to Dina's mind. She knows Ellie doesn't want to put Jesse's death into exact words either._ _

__"How did you get us here? Where—" Dina stops herself, talking feeling overwhelming. Slowly, her hand leaves Ellie's arm, and goes to hover over her stomach._ _

__"We're not far from the theatre. I just wanted to make sure you were resting somewhere safe. Just in case— yeah," Ellie exhales._ _

__Just in case somebody came back to finish them off, Dina knows._ _

__"That arrow was a bitch to get out." The taller of the two adds, with an attempted lightheartedness to her tone._ _

__Dina wants to return it, but she can't seem to bring herself to._ _

__Her own hand now rested solidly against her stomach, though she can't bring herself to make any further movement._ _

__There's a long moment of silence. Words linger on both girls' tongues, yet it's several minutes before either speak._ _

__"He knew."_ _

__Dina's gaze had fallen to the floor. It was cleaner than the majority of the buildings they'd spent time in, and she wondered if Ellie had cleaned it herself; knew Dina preferred things neat. She looked up instantly at the words, searching for any indication on Ellie's expression that she meant what she suspected._ _

__When Dina still doesn't say anything, just waits, Ellie looks down at her hands. Fiddles with them. "He figured it out. He asked— he asked and I couldn't lie to him about it, Dina."_ _

__Dina doesn't know what to say, what to think._ _

__She doesn't know if she's happy he died knowing— or frustrated with Ellie for being the one to tell him._ _

__She doesn't know what to think about the fatherless child she's to raise._ _

__And then Ellie moves, slightly shifts so she's fully leaning in front of where Dina sits on a hastily placed mattress. There's a second of hesitation, before the taller's hands settle atop of Dina's, resting against her stomach. Slowly, Ellie's thumb moves to the side, and begins to move up and down in a gentle, caressing motion._ _

__At first, the gesture feels faraway and foreign. The furthest she'd expected from the other._ _

__In a way, Dina had sort of figured her pregnancy would be something Ellie would avoid for as long as possible. Maybe she still would be if Jesse were there._ _

__But he wasn't. Things were different._ _

__And in the simple touch, the wordless connection between them, Dina felt like that was okay._ _

__Because she had Ellie._ _

__And so did her baby._ _

__

__It's weeks before they can even begin to move. Ellie heals. Tommy heals, but it becomes obvious the limp in his walk is to stay, making the journey to Jackson feel even further from possibility. There was no doubt it would take time, maybe more than Dina could give. She was healing too, but the feeling of weakness lingered._ _

__Regardless, she promises them she's fine, or _will_ be fine, she just needs to get to Jackson. __

____Something about calling it 'home' didn't feel right anymore._ _ _ _

____She whispers a prayer before they leave._ _ _ _

____There are days of travel where Dina feels okay, like she can make it, and others where she can barely walk, moments away from collapsing in the middle of the road._ _ _ _

____There are days when they make no progress, and Dina is overwhelmed with guilt for being the reason._ _ _ _

____There are days when Ellie contemplates changes of plans, herself or Tommy or both of the two to reach Jackson on there own, to get people to come get Dina with horses, but she refuses every time it comes up._ _ _ _

____It feels like months have passed when the gates of Jackson are finally in sight, and there's _people, _people that don't want to harm them, people they know.___ _ _ _

______It's an immediate feeling of safety that she hasn't recognised in longer than she can remember._ _ _ _ _ _

______There's barely a moment between the gates opening and people appearing around them, one of the first being Maria, who Dina imagines is to immediately busy herself with wife-to-husband lecturing, but the woman comes to her and Ellie first— surprisingly enough, with a hug._ _ _ _ _ _

______Dina isn't sure what to think, barely registering the words spoken to them, the way Maria examines them, calls for others to retrieve any of their doctors, and then Maria pauses._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Dina," She speaks, with a motherly calmness about it. "Are you pregnant?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______For a moment, Dina can't do anything but frown. There's a weak feeling in her knees, and she doesn't know why. Her pregnancy wasn't something for just her anymore, not just her or Ellie or Tommy or Jesse. She'd known she'd been showing for a while now, but she hadn't prepared to be outright asked._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Yeah." She answers._ _ _ _ _ _

______There's another question, a wordless one for Ellie. Dina can see it in Maria's eyes, she's unspoken in asking about Jesse. Ellie shakes her head._ _ _ _ _ _

______She doesn't say anything to that. "Let's get you both checked over."_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______It's only a few days before Dina begins to move in with Jesse's parents. It's hard, hearing his name so often, seeing pictures of him, drawings he did as a kid, being around his stuff. But in a way, it helps too. It doesn't feel like his presence is completely gone._ _ _ _ _ _

______Not long after their return, a group had set off to Seattle for his body. No one in Jackson would feel right leaving him there, without a proper place to rest._ _ _ _ _ _

______She sort of feels like a burden to his parents, she can't imagine trying to process the death of their son while simultaneously caring for his pregnant ex girlfriend._ _ _ _ _ _

______But she needs their help._ _ _ _ _ _

______Ellie does what she can, but she can't say that the other is as experienced as a parent._ _ _ _ _ _

______When Dina is feeling okay, sometimes she stays with Ellie._ _ _ _ _ _

______She sees a side of the girl she hasn't before, an Ellie fussing over Dina eating and drinking water, making sure that she's comfortable and that she's had enough rest._ _ _ _ _ _

______Dina knows she's trying._ _ _ _ _ _

______Time passes, and things start to feel the same. Normal, almost._ _ _ _ _ _

______Sometimes she visits Jesse, talks to him, the same as she does to pictures of her sister. Tells him about her pregnancy, how she feels that it's a boy._ _ _ _ _ _

______The idea of a boy— it makes her smile, ever so slightly. Jesse's mother tells her all about how he was when he was young, how full of energy and light he was. And amongst all the worries of not being a good enough mother, not substituting the role of a father, of getting too tired, Dina starts to think she feels excited._ _ _ _ _ _

______And when one day Ellie comes back from a patrol, with a small pile of children's books and various toys that she'd searched hours for, Dina _knows_ she's excited.___ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Hey." Ellie appears with a look Dina raises an eyebrow at, hand resting at the door frame she stands by._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________JJ makes a delighted noise from his mother's lap at the sight of the other, and Ellie can't resist approaching to give the baby a gentle poke at his cheek._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Something up?" Dina questions, letting JJ's hand wrap around her thumb, whilst her other arm kept him in a secure hold._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Mmm," Ellie just hums, and Dina knows well she's trying to keep the smaller girl in suspense._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Ellie." Dina speaks in a mocking stern tone. It makes Ellie chuckle a little, at just how good the other is at her 'mother voice' already._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Alright, alright," She holds her hands up in a joking defence position. "I was just wondering if Jesse's parents could look after the little potato for a while? Got something to show you."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Oh?" Dina questions, and JJ makes another noise. "I'm sure we can sort that out. But I think you owe me a hint to what you're showing me, at least."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Ellie laughs again. "Nope." She answers simply, and leans over to press a kiss to Dina's forehead. "I'll meet you by the gates with Japan, then?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Dina teasingly grumbles. "Fine."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________It takes a little over half an hour for her to get JJ and herself ready, and make sure Jesse's parents are fine to take care of him, before she heads out to meet Ellie._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She smiles again at the sight of her, Ellie having that smugness about her that tells Dina whatever she's found to show her is _good. _____ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________It's a while of travel, close to two hours, but Dina enjoys it. It's been longer than she can imagine since she last spent time with Ellie like this, riding in the peacefulness of a late morning._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________They come to a stop at somewhat of a clearing, and once off, Dina watches as Ellie leads Japan to wait by a fence._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________She follows, and exhales at the sight of what awaits her through the fence, past long overgrown and dead grass._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Is that what I think it is?" She looks back to Ellie for only a second._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Ellie's smiling even wider than before, opening the gate of the fence for the two of them. "Definitely needs some cleaning, but—"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Ellie, are you serious? Oh my god."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"What, you don't like it?" Ellie teases, ushering the other inside the gate by the small of her back._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Shut up."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________When they approach the farmhouse, Dina pauses to take it all in. It feels unreal, something she'd only ever dreamt of._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Ellie pushes the front door open, and Dina steps inside, looking around._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________It's a wordless offering from Ellie._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Sure, it's not in the best state, like any house would be decades after the outbreak, but it's not the worst she's seen, probably only requiring a week or two of cleaning. Moving their stuff, maybe they'd have to find a car. Bring a generator, fix up a working water supply. But it was all possible._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Ellie," She says again, turning to the other. "It's perfect."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Perfect for our family, I hope."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Dina's taken aback for a second. Their family. Ellie, Dina, and JJ._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Our family," The smaller girl echos. She likes the way it sounds. "Yeah."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


End file.
